Byron Fire Protection District

Byron Fire Protection District, Byron, IL

Established 1956

Chief Andrew M. Politsch

Established in 1956, Byron Fire Protection District is located right next to the Rock River in Byron, Illinois. With 1 station and 46 personnel as of July 2026, Byron FPD has an annual call volume between 1200-1300. Located in Byron FPD’s response area is the Byron Clean Energy Center, 1 of the 6 commercially operating nuclear power plants in Illinois.

While we were on-site at the Byron FPD, crews were busy completing station chores, maintaining equipment, and ensuring their apparatus remained in peak condition. These everyday responsibilities are just as important as emergency responses, helping ensure firefighters are always prepared when the next call comes in.

We also had the opportunity to view their impressive apparatus fleet while at their station, including vehicles from Pierce, Horton/Foster Coach, LDV, Chevy and Ford. The highlight of our day was watching the crew perform aerial operations training with their tower/ladder.These routine training evolutions help crews maintain proficiency and ensure they're prepared for complex incidents that require elevated rescue or firefighting operations.

Byron Fire Protection District exemplifies what all fire departments go through, whether volunteer, career, or on-call: balancing daily trainings, chores, and station life while responding to emergency calls coming in. While we were filming, the crew on-shift kindly offered to to make the living quarters, i.e. kitchen, bunks, etc., camera ready. While normally we love locations we’re filming to be camera ready, our goal with Hometown Department is to capture the stations “as is” - if a call comes in, first responders go. Dinner might be cooking, beds might not be made, rigs are half-washed, and they stop everything to respond to the community they serve.

With Hometown Department, we hope to shed light on these everyday moments of station life that balance the normal activities with daily emergencies that come in. Thank you to the men and women of Byron Fire Protection District for hosting us.

To find out more about employment opportunities with Byron Fire Protection District, visit https://www.byronfire.com/employment/